Voorblad zadeltas, versierd met rasterwerk met hakenkruisbloemen c. 1800 - 1900

This saddlebag front, made by the Jaffi Volk, features a grid of hooked cross flowers. These motifs, which we might recognize as swastikas, are ancient symbols of good fortune and well-being. Consider the hooked cross: before its appropriation, it appeared across cultures, from ancient India to pre-Columbian America. In Hinduism and Buddhism, the swastika represents cosmic harmony and eternal cycles. But observe how its meaning shifted, warped by political ideologies into an emblem of hatred and destruction. This transformation speaks volumes about our collective memory and how symbols can be manipulated, their original intentions twisted to serve darker purposes. This saddlebag, created without malevolent intent, serves as a potent reminder of the symbol’s complex journey, its shifting identity reflecting the tumultuous tides of history and the depths of human experience.